Western Arts Theatre brings life experiences to Kindred

Western Arts Theatre brings life experiences to Kindred

Western Arts Theatre is gearing up to bring their latest production to Kindred this week. With a perfect combination of heart and soul, XYZ shows the story of how our experiences as children or teenagers help us grow as adults. We were lucky enough to chat to co-directors Alexandra Karaoutsadis and Frankie Guida before XYZ opens this Thursday.

Thanks so much for taking the time to speak with us guys. Tell us a little about your background before we get started.

Alex:
I’m a content writer, with a degree in journalism but I’ve been dancing since the age of 3, and have done musical theatre for several years.

Frankie:
I have a long background in performing. I started doing drama classes at age six. My parents thought it would be a good hobby for me to have because I had a wild imagination (and still do) but it soon became a passion. I only started writing in 2010 when I was studying musical theatre full time. Writing cabaret was part of my course but I realised I was actually kind of good at it, so I have continued ever since.

What inspired you to create this show?

Alex:
A lot of things. From our own life experiences, to listening to a song in the car and envisioning a scene along with it. We wanted to touch on a lot of different themes, and I think we’ve done that.

Frankie:
I always find it hard to answer this question because I find inspiration for my work in everything! XYZ is about growing up. It’s about life experiences. So I guess life and the world around me is what inspired me.

What should we expect from XYZ?

Alex:
Themes that relate to different avenues you’ve taken in life. The show is mirrored with a younger and older self, with the older self reflecting back on moments that have shaped them in their adulthood, both positive and negative. I imagine there’ll be a lot of reflection from adult audience members on their childhood and a lot of emotions along with it.

Frankie:
Expect to go through an emotional rollercoaster! We definitely wanted to represent life in the show and although each scene is a new story, the show on a whole is definitely mirroring life itself. We want audiences to walk out being able to connect with some of the scenes and stories and make their own stories within them as well.

What’s your favourite part of the show?

Alex:
Definitely watching the characters we dreamt of come to life. The small moments in each scene that completely grab you from start to finish. The children who don’t fall behind their adult counterpart, but instead play an integral part of the role.

Frankie:
The entire show; I don’t like to have favourites in these situations, the cast all have different scenes that tell different stories in the show and to pick any would be too hard. They all make me feel something different! For example one scene makes me cry with laughter and another one will make me sad and happy at the same time.

What’s in store for the rest of 2017?

Alex:
We have a lot of great shows coming the end of 2017 and into 2018. The next production is Into The Woods, directed by our producer Chris Anderson.

XYZ runs Thursday 4 May – Saturday 6 May at Kindred Studios. Tickets are available through Trybooking.
For more information, visit Western Arts Theatre on Facebook